Does parquet only have advantages compared to design flooring?

Yes, you can also see in parquet floors that the floor looks completely normal despite heavy use.

The fact is that every covering has its reason for existence, and you have to decide for yourself how the floor covering should be so that you feel comfortable in the house or apartment.

I personally am pro wood and think that negative reports mostly result from the floor possibly not being properly maintained / cared for.

We are currently still in the process of deciding and have currently chosen a floor from the company Solidfloor, which has a slightly “hand-planed” surface. The feeling underfoot was so convincing compared to a flat parquet that it will probably be this covering. The only major drawback is that the surface would be flat after sanding, but so what…

As so often in life: it depends:

If, for example, you also want the kitchen and entrance area to have this look, I would rather tend to vinyl. If you have three small children and two big dogs, then also rather vinyl.

In all other cases, I would rather tend to parquet. We have lacquered parquet in the living area on the ground floor, which is very robust. Once a year, a wipe-on sealant is applied. Scratches and dents are hardly visible so far.

Upstairs we have oiled parquet. Nobody walks around there with shoes and so far it looks like new.

Overall, it is easy to maintain. Vacuuming is enough, as we have a small child and no pets. Mopping is done only very rarely and is only rarely necessary.

In the basement, we also have a fitness room with vinyl flooring. I don’t like the feel as much, but the more robust nature was decisive. In the living areas, I would always choose parquet again.

What about tiles? We currently want to lay tiles completely in our new build. We are strongly against using vinyl, putting plastic on the floor, even though it was initially part of the selection. With parquet, we are afraid that in some rooms (living room near the dining table and office) it will wear quickly due to chairs and won't look very nice. Especially when using the office chair in the children's room and office to move around.

There are felt gliders and soft wheels for that. But with a child, parquet is not an option for me either, because they like to throw metal cars around and drop scissors and hammers. They bring in stones and drop them and generally do not treat the 100 EUR/m² parquet more respectfully than the 5 EUR/m² laminate. That’s why there are tiles downstairs and laminate upstairs, and the cheapest laminate with a reasonably acceptable decor is used. It stays in until it either falls apart completely or the children are at a reasonably usable age. At 14, they are allowed to work under certain conditions, then any damage will just be compensated. I’m not really afraid of plastic; 80% of all children’s toys are made of plastic. Sometimes they even suck on plastic. I trust that the legislator enforces sufficiently low limits.

A few signs of wear don’t bother me on a wooden floor, that’s just life. Still, I had the guys lay laminate flooring themselves in their apartments with my support – hoping they will respect it more and confident that I won’t have to be annoyed about a wooden floor treated with male-teenage nonchalance during renovation when they move out. That can always go in later.

I’m not really afraid of plastic, 80% of all children’s toys are made of ploassdig. They sometimes suck on plastic.

I’m not afraid of plastic either; there are countless varieties, even bio-plastic. Some of the plastic found in children’s rooms. When plastic smells bad/stinks, my alarm bells go off. I find vinyl flooring unpleasant in terms of smell. A simple subjective decision: what stinks stays outside.

Tiles? - Plastic? - Parquet?: the never ending story.., oh sorry: always a new topic on the old topic ;)